In Texas high school football is a religion
For Texans, the TV program Friday Night Lights shows the almost insane dedication and addiction of small Texas towns to their football team. Texas Monthly has said
“IT’S A GAME, AN EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITY, a community bond, the state religion, the biggest show in town every Friday night in the fall, a character builder, a revered symbol, an inspirational rallying point that offers a rare moment—more like 48 minutes—in which all races, religions, and economic strata put aside their differences to get behind the home team, a traffic generator for the local Dairy Queen, and topic A in coffee shops from Roscoe (“How ’bout them Plowboys?”) to Itasca (“Go Wampus Cats!”).”
In some communities football is so important that when they get into the playoffs or the state championship, the whole town closes down and everyone goes to the game. Just think about the poor cop that has to stay in town and watch for looters. Of course, all the looters went to the game. You also have to consider the amount of money that school districts have spent, not only on the program in general but also in the cost of stadiums. Occasionally, a community reverts to a little sanity and refuses to spend the kind of money that would signify that their football program as the biggest and baddest. Recently, Katy ISD, a suburb of Houston voted down bond issue for a new stadium costing $69.5 million for a new 14,000 seat stadium. What was the argument for needing such a lavish stadium? It have been because of Katy ISD’s high schools had won the state championship seven years in a row and was expected to win the eighth. At the same time Houston voters were defeating a bond of over $200. Million to make the “old inadequate” Dome stadium into a convention center or something else, yet to be determined.
Another issue that comes up every legislature involves schools vouchers. Even though Texans believe in school choice, as yet they have not approved vouchers. There are various theories as to why this is but it is the rural districts that have voted the proposals down. One theory is that it goes back to football. There are many small communities that cannot field a football team if they have to compete with private schools. Texas has a very ingrained football program that includes six man teams and the communities see these teams as one way that they can continue to be viable as a close knit community.
This same philosophy does not extend to urban schools. In Houston, some racially and economically diverse schools can barely field a team and those schools in most cases have little community support. In Alief, Hastings and Elsik high schools are what are called consolidated schools where students throughout the district have to go through a lottery for admission. The schools are right next to one another and students may live next door to a student that goes to the other school. Typically one of the three high schools have competitive sports programs and seem to be supported by the community. I would have to say that sports adds and provides a sense of pride for the community. However, a clear indication of not only the academic achievement and the community culture may or may not be keyed to sport success. Sports teams don’t have to be big winners but there is every indication that they bring people together regardless of academic success. When people feel a part of the team, there is less of a feeling of isolation. Numerous studies including one by noted sociologist James Coleman would show how the success of schools is highly dependent on what he termed social capital, “the norms, the social networks, and the relationships between adults and children that are of value for the child’s growing up.” My observations would tend to prove him right. So, when considering a public school and the community that supports that school, look at the academic achievement, then look at the sports program and then look at community cohesiveness and the support given to children in that community.
Now, I wait for the strings and arrows. Just remember, I grew up in Texas
TMO Alief 
